Gay life Nigeria is evolvg, even as the untry nsirs a measure to make homosexualy a crime punishable by 14 years prison.
Contents:
- ONE MAN'S EXPERIENCE OF BEG GAY NIGERIA
- BEG GAY IN NIGERIA: WHAT LIFE IS LIKE FOR TWO HOMOSEXUAL NIGERIANS
- GAY IN NIGERIA: LGBT LIFE IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST HOMOPHOBIC NATNS
- 'SEX EDUTN'S' ERIC EFFNG IS SPIRATN TO NIGERIA'S GAYS, SAYS ACTIVIST
ONE MAN'S EXPERIENCE OF BEG GAY NIGERIA
Many Ains who are not gay or bisexual – sexually attracted only to people of the same sex or of both sex – claim that beg gay or bisexual is not acceptable for relig and cultural reasons. This cultural and legal environment creas the chanc that gay and bisexual dividuals will be discrimated agast. Gay and bisexual people are aware of this, and often anticipate discrimatory acts even when they are not immediately prent.
BEG GAY IN NIGERIA: WHAT LIFE IS LIKE FOR TWO HOMOSEXUAL NIGERIANS
Taken to the extreme, gay and bisexual people n imbibe the negative attus and direct them towards themselv – what’s known as ternalised stigma or self-hatred. Collectively, the strsful factors crease the likelihood of mental health problems and low life-satisfactn among gay and bisexual relative to heterosexual dividuals. Few Ain studi have vtigated how gay and bisexual men manage mory strs.
GAY IN NIGERIA: LGBT LIFE IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST HOMOPHOBIC NATNS
Based on this, my lleagu and I cid to look to what the suatn was among Nigerian gay and bisexual men. We asked 89 gay and bisexual Nigerian men to fill qutnnair that asked them about self-stigma due to beg gay and bisexual, qualy of life and the pg strategi they ed. The fdgs tell that gay and bisexual men Nigeria who have low levels of self-stigma and have adopted posive pg strategi n mata a good qualy of life.
This means that one way of helpg gay and bisexual men – Nigeria as well as other Ain untri – is to teach them posive strategi. The clu acceptg themselv for who they are and seeg the posive aspects of beg gay or bisexual.
This lls for a posive change the attu towards gay and bisexual dividuals. It also lls for a change punive legislatn, and posive addns such as laws to protect gay and bisexual dividuals om beg discrimated agast. Some people prent beg gay and beg Ain as patible.
'SEX EDUTN'S' ERIC EFFNG IS SPIRATN TO NIGERIA'S GAYS, SAYS ACTIVIST
At the same time, I am also unapologetilly gay. I happily accept myself as a gay Ain. What was like to grow up Nigeria as gay?
When I got to sendary school, I ma my first gay iends, and then, when I was 18, I went to my first ever gay party Lagos. Girls uld go to school stead of beg married off; women uld ll the police to seek protectn om domtic vlence stead of beg mistreated; transsexual people uld have accs to medil support stead of hidg who they are; and gay and lbian people uld fall love and lead liv worth livg, stead of beg strangled by society. The study also found that 30 per cent of Nigerian young people between 16 and 26 years old would accept a iend, fay member or someone they know, if that person me out to them as lbian, gay or bisexual.